As a colleague recently reminded me, our system of government was developed not to pass laws, but to make change slowly. Take, for example, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the international treaty dedicated to gender equality. Although the U.S. played a major role in drafting the treaty and signed it in 1980, it still has not been ratified by the Senate. We're hoping to change that this year.

Well, we’re still fuming over the recent straight-up Patriot Act reauthorization. Apparently, so is Senator Leahy (D-Vt.). But, rather than lick his wounds, he decided to ask Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General (IG) Glenn Fine…

Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Nauru, Palau, Tonga, and the United States. One of these things is not like the others . . . But you read that list right. Those are the seven countries worldwide that have not yet ratified the Convention on the Elimination…

As you well know by now, on Sunday night, the House of Representatives made history, passing the Senate's health care reform bill by a vote of 219-212. The President signed that bill into law yesterday. Later Sunday night, the House also passed…

"We've come to love our fears more than we love our freedoms," Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) mused on the House floor just before that chamber voted 315-97 (with 20 members not voting) to reauthorize the USA Patriot Act without any changes…

Thirty-seven years ago Friday, the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Roe v. Wade, legalizing abortion in this country and giving women another means to decide whether and when to become a parent. The decision, recognizing abortion as a private…

Today we woke up in a brave new world. Did you know it? I don’t blame you if you didn’t. With health care reform sucking the air out of the room, it’s been hard to pay attention to anything else. But, yesterday, the reproductive freedom…

You did it!! The Senate just voted 54-45 to table (read: defeat) the Nelson-Hatch abortion coverage ban amendment! Thanks so much to everyone who took action to stop this draconian and backward amendment. Your work truly made a difference!

Stupak Amendment Round 2. Stupak: 1. Women’s Health: 0. But not for long. In the month since the anti-choice Stupak Amendment passed the House during its debate over health care reform, you have taken tremendous action. Nearly 30,000 of…